Monday, November 19, 2012

Let Me Axe You a Question


I had this awful linguistics class in college with a great professor. She brought in guest speakers every week, and one of them repeatedly used the word "axe" in place of "ask." Each time she said "axe" it ground at me, like she was murdering the English language, which isn't even something I'm particularly inspired to protect. I must have said something about it to my teacher, because she suggested in the nicest way possible that the term "axe" was merely a shifting of the dialect embraced in certain circles. And rather than it bothering me, I should consider the possibility that I was bringing my own prejudices into an ever shifting language landscape. So I have her to thank for actually making me more open minded during college. But besides that, a really dull class.

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